But his time at St Mirren Park was also peppered with fitness woes, suffering cruciate knee ligament damage on two separate occasions and making just 12 appearances in the two seasons between 2011 and 2013.

While McGregor appreciates the Saints handing him a crack at full-time football, it is the way they treated him off the pitch which left a lasting mark.

He recalled: “I was there for four years and had a right good time there. I had two bad injuries there and they really looked after me so I’ve got nothing but good things to say about them.

“Anybody will tell you when you get an injury you need a strong support network around you – that’s your friends and your family and also your club. I got an injury in my second year and they were good enough to give me an extra two years.

“They really looked after me. They’re a great club with good facilities so it will be good to play against them because I’ve never come across them since I left.

“I repaid them in the end but I’ve got a lot of good things to say about the club because they gave me an opportunity to showcase myself.

“When I went to St Mirren there was a lot of negativity about me because I was a Second Division player but they had faith in me and that is all you can ask for.”

The Hibees are in buoyant mood as they welcome St Mirren to the capital.

A magnificent 2-0 win over Aberdeen – and a fifth consecutive clean sheet for McGregor and co. in defence – saw Alan Stubbs’ side progress into the last eight of the League Cup.

McGregor is quick to guard against any complacency following that shock win, but reckons it was a result which underlines Hibs’ Premiership pedigree.

He continued: “The focus is now on St Mirren, who haven’t been on the greatest of runs but they’ll be looking this is a game to kick-start their season. We need to be vigilant against that and make sure we’re not complacent.

“But I’ve played in a few teams now and I think the quality we’ve got here is great.

“There’s a really good blend of young and older players and we have a few unsung heroes here – Dylan McGeouch, for example, does a power of work that you maybe wouldn’t notice from up in the stands. but you certainly notice it when you play with him.

“We’ve got good legs in midfield and we’re solid at the back which are two of the main attributes a team needs. [Liam] Fontaine and [Paul] Hanlon have proven themselves to be right good defenders who take no chances.

“Then you’ve got wee Jason [Cummings]. From back to front I definitely think we’ve got more than enough quality to hold our own at Premiership level.”